This invention relates to an improved pet chew toy, and more specifically to a chew toy formed of tough dried animal hide, such as pork skin, with a softer encapsulated meat center. The invention is manufactured in a variety of shapes and sizes common in the industry. Standard commercial chew toys are designed to exercise the jaws of the pet, and clean its teeth and gums. These products are typically dry and tasteless, and generally unappealing to the pet. Other chew toys incorporate a high percentage of soft meat, and have a relatively short chew life. These products likewise provide little jaw exercise and teeth cleaning.
Traditional rawhide dog chews, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,988,045, are made with bovine rawhide. In manufacturing, the hide is first fleshed to remove surface fat, de-haired, and then split to a desired thickness. The top portion or grain is used for leather while the bottom portion or “split” is used for rawhide dog chews. Since the entire hide is exposed to the de-hairing process using chemicals such as hydrated lime, sodium hydra sulfide, and ammonia sulfate, the resulting processed material has a generally unappealing taste ranging from chemical/bitter to bland. The material is further treated with hydrogen peroxide for whitening and/or expansion or “puffing”. The hide is then shaped by hand and dried or dry-pressed by machine into numerous shapes for dog chew toys. Pieces of the rawhide may also be ground and glued with gelatin into multiple different shapes and products. In all of the above processing, little attention is paid to the taste of the rawhide chew material.
The prior art further teaches a “soft” flavored rawhide made by extruding the product at high temperature and pressure. While improving its desirability and taste, this product is often rapidly consumed by the pet providing little aggressive chewing, and minimal teeth cleaning and jaw exercise.
Other attempts have been made to improve the taste/smell of rawhide chews. One such attempt described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,653 adds jerky in layers between sheets of rawhide. A one-half to one-inch wide length of the jerky is exposed to stimulate chewing. In practice, the jerky is generally easily pulled from the chew and consumed separately. This again leaves a tasteless and unattractive product which is of little interest to the pet. Furthermore, the jerky has a bright red artificial color that can stain carpeting, rugs, and other flooring. Other deficiencies of this teaching include the removal of flavor volatiles during dehydration and the impracticality of using highly palatable sugars. The product's taste is further sacrificed by using a tanned bovine hide. Tanned rawhide adds even more chemicals to the product, such as chromium, fungicides, bactericides, and tanning extracts. These chemicals not only destroy the palatability of the chew but may also harm the health of the pet.
Another prior art chew is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,277,420. According to this prior art, the chew has a ratio of meat to rawhide of 25%–75% up to 75%–25%. Because of the high meat content, this chew more closely resembles a food item which is rapidly consumed, and is of little value in cleaning the teeth and gums. The center of the chew comprises a soft, moist, sugar type treat which would likely stain carpeting and other flooring if dropped during consumption.
The present invention addresses these and other limitations of the prior art by providing an improved pet chew toy which is highly palatable and desirable, and which incorporates a high percentage of extremely tough chew media. The invention achieves the ultimate goal—to encourage hours of aggressive, sustained chewing. This activity exercises the jaws, cleans the teeth and gums, and satisfies the pet's natural urge to chew. The invention offers increased chew life without sacrificing taste.